What are the responsibilities and job description for the Southwest Va. Accountability and Enterprise Reporter position at Cardinal News?
About the Role
Cardinal News is expanding its coverage of Southwest Virginia and is seeking a reporter to cover accountability and enterprise stories in Southwest Virginia, with a focus on Wise County and surrounding counties along the Route 58 corridor. We’re looking for a journalist who believes in the power of public service reporting — someone who shows up, listens first, and shines light on the forces that shape our region.
This role is for a reporter who doesn’t chase the news cycle but builds it — through original enterprise work, consistent community engagement, and a deep understanding of the issues people face in Appalachian Virginia. We want someone who can track how decisions made in Richmond, D.C., and corporate boardrooms affect our local schools, hospitals, town governments, and daily lives.
Your reporting will center the voices of the people we serve, not just the powerful. You’ll be part of a team committed to covering stories that too often go untold, and to delivering that journalism in ways that work for our communities — whether through traditional articles, videos, explainers, audio, events, or something new you help us create.
What You’ll Do
- Report and write deeply sourced accountability and enterprise stories rooted in Southwest Virginia.
- Engage regularly with local residents, community groups, and institutions to understand issues from the ground up.
- Pitch and develop original stories that connect local experiences to broader systems and structures.
- Use data, public records, and in-person reporting to uncover information that informs and empowers.
- Collaborate with editors and multimedia colleagues to present stories across platforms — from written features to visual, audio, and social formats.
- Help build trust by meeting people where they are — including exploring nontraditional storytelling methods and attending local events or meetings.
What You’ll Bring
- A track record of (or strong interest in) accountability reporting that holds power to account and elevates underrepresented voices.
- Experience with enterprise journalism — going beyond press releases and breaking news to report original, impactful stories.
- Deep curiosity and respect for rural communities, including a desire to understand and reflect the realities of life in Southwest Virginia.
- Comfort with community engagement, from listening sessions and source building to co-creating coverage with audiences.
- Strong writing, reporting, and story development skills across a range of formats.
- A willingness to experiment with multiplatform storytelling (with support) — whether that’s short-form video, audio, newsletters, or public events.
- Working knowledge of public records, data reporting, and open-source research (or a willingness to learn).
- A collaborative, team-oriented approach and a commitment to journalistic integrity, equity, and transparency.
Preferred (But Not Required)
- Familiarity with Southwest Virginia or a background in covering rural, underrepresented, or economically transitioning regions.
- Experience with multimedia tools (photography, video, audio, or social-first storytelling).
- Comfort working remotely with a distributed team while staying connected and communicative.
About Cardinal News
Cardinal News is a nonprofit digital news organization serving communities in Southwest and Southside Virginia. We were founded in the fall of 2021 to report the untold stories of these regions and strengthen the voices of the people in our communities who have been sidelined in the commonwealth’s political, economic and cultural conversations — simply because of where they live.
We were named Startup of the Year by the Institute for Nonprofit News in 2021, and LION Business of the Year by LION Publishers in 2025. We are continuing to grow rapidly, with expansion projects underway to deepen our reporting and broaden our local news network to better serve our communities.
We want our team members to feel supported in their work. We budget for training, travel, and the tools necessary to tell stories well. Our benefits include:
- Competitive pay
- Paid holidays and vacation time
- Health, dental, and vision insurance
- Contributions to health savings accounts
- A matching 401(k) plan
- Short- and long-term disability insurance
- Most importantly: collaborative, mission-driven teammates
To Apply
Please send a résumé, 3-5 clips or portfolio samples, and a brief cover letter to jobs@cardinalnews.org, explaining why you’re a good fit for this role and what you’d be excited to cover in Wise County and the region.
We Value Diverse Perspectives
We are an equal opportunity employer and do not and will not discriminate in employment, recruitment, board membership, advertisements for employment, compensation, termination, upgrading, promotions, and other conditions of employment on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status.
We also know not every qualified candidate will meet every single requirement listed above. If you have most of them, and you’re passionate about serving communities with rigorous, empathetic journalism, we want to hear from you.